Lemo RTA Review

I know, I know, I am a little late with this Lemo review, but truth be told I just wasn’t interested in this atomizer. However, in light of the Lemo’s popularity among vapers worldwide, in addition to the release of the new Lemo 2, I figured I had better find out what the all of the Lemo love was about.

The Lemo RTA is a bottom coil rebuildable atomizer made by Eleaf/iSmoka. While its design is clearly based on the Kayfun by SvoeMesto, the Lemo RTA brings with it a slight increase in e-liquid capacity, increased air flow capacity, and a standard pyrex glass tank. But is the Lemo RTA really all that?

The Eleaf Lemo RTA featured in this review was provided by Vapor Authority for the purpose of this product review. The Lemo is packaged in a branded white gift box, and includes the Lemo RTA, and a spare parts/accessory package. The genuine Lemo RTA is currently on sale at Vapor Authority for $33.99usd. Use coupon code VAVCLEMO at checkout and bring the price down to $31.99.

Features:

Adjustable air flow

Pyrex glass tank

Adjustable 510 connection

BUILD QUALITY

The Lemo RTA is about as basic as you can get in terms of aesthetics, which is not necessarily a bad thing. However, right out of the box I noticed a fairly sizable blemish across the bottom of the tank above the Lemo name. In fact the entire bottom section of the tank is a little blotchy, and uneven all over. However, the body of the atomizer feels solid, and durable, albeit a little scratched up.

The Lemo is fully constructed of stainless steel, a pyrex glass tank, and a removable 510 drip tip. There are four air intake holes positioned around the bottom of the atomizer.

While the Lemo was not every impressive looking out of the box, as I broke down the device I could see that the Lemo was made better than it looks. All of the threaded parts are well machined, the threads are clean and free of any metal burrs, dirt or debris.

The Lemo RTA caome pre-built and wicked with what looks like 26 gauge wire, and cotton. The construction of the build deck, while clearly based on the Kayfun design, also clearly demonstrates Eleaf’s attempt to improve that design. This is probably the most precise build deck assembly that I have seen come out of China. The positive block is straight, the insulator appears precisely cut and even under the positive block.

The insulator under the positive block is thicker, and is constructed better than an authentic Kayfun honestly. The way that the insulator surrounds the front and sides of the positive block pretty much ensures that the positive block will not shift out of place and cause short.

The juice channels are milled considerably deeper than the original Kayfun, and the center air hole is also much wider.

Underneath the build deck you will find the air flow adjustment screw, and the e-liquid fill port. It may be a little hard to see in the photo below, but there are two notches on either side of the air flow adjustment screw that you would use to turn/adjust the screw with something like a flat head screwdriver or a fingernail.

The inside of threaded 510 connection also acts as a juice reservoir for the condensation that will eventually accumulate once you start vaping.

PERFORMANCE

Since it appears that China has stepped up their pre-built coil game, I used the pre-installed coil that came with the Lemo RTA. The pre-installed build metered out to 1.4 ohms, which is perfect for me since I usually run my RTAs between 1-1.5 ohms. I did not use the cotton that came with Lemo, I used some authentic Japanese cotton instead.

Just as you would with most other rebuildable tank atomizers, I primed the wicks with e-liquid prior to filling the tank with e-liquid. While I was not thrilled about the bottom fill method of the Lemo, what I was happy about is that the fill hole itself is large enough that I could use a glass bottle dropper to fill the tank without any problems.

After I filled the tank I adjusted the air flow in an attempt to tighten up the very open air flow of the Lemo. In spite of making more than three full rotations of the air flow screw, the draw was still a bit more open than I would have liked it. I don’t like a tight draw, but I also don’t like a very open one either.

I had my first vape on the Lemo with one my current ADVs, Dr. Juice Delish. This is a max VG e-liquid which the Lemo does not have any issues with consistent wicking, which really speaks well for the Lemo considering the draw wasn’t tight. The flavor produced by the Lemo was better than I expected even as it did take about a good 20 minutes or so for the coil in wick to break in.

In an effort to tighten up the draw on the Lemo I decided to play around with the air flow control screw a little more. Initially it had seemed that the AFC didn’t really offer that much adjustability because I didn’t feel much difference as I continued to adjust it. After several rotations to the right eventually the air flow did shut off completely.

So the air flow of the Lemo is really adjustable, but you will have to play with it quite a bit especially if you are looking to tighten up the draw.

I did vape the Lemo side by side with my Russian 2.0, and Kayfun 3.1 so that I could compare its performance. As I mentioned earlier, the flavor that the Lemo produces is sweeter than my other RTAs, but not Fogger sweet. In spite of the greater air flow capacity I didn’t feel like the Lemo produced any more vapor than my Russian 2.0 which I normally run with its 3mm air hole max open.

After a solid 3 days of vaping the Lemo it really grew on me, and I was pleased with its performance. The draw is not as smooth as my Russian 2.0, but it is a little better than my Kayfun 3.1. The more I vaped the Lemo, the more it reminded me of the full size Subtank, specifically in terms of flavor production. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Lemo RTA was Kanger’s inspiration behind the Subtank design.

Anything that I felt the Lemo may have lacked in aesthetic style, and finish, it most definitely made up for in its overall performance, which I would rate as excellent. I did not have any problems with leaking or flooding, no dry hits even with max VG e-liquid. The Lemo RTA is a real workhorse.

OVERALL

For me the Lemo RTA is good reminder that I should not judge a book by its cover. The Lemo has performed perfectly for me, and the quality of the vape more than holds its own when compared to my more expensive authentic atomizers. The AFC and the bottom fill method of the Lemo RTA does a leave a bit to be desired though. However, due to its solid performance these aspects of the Lemo are easy to forgive.

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Nicole Lea is a committed vape gear enthusiast of 3 years, who is dedicated to informing, educating, and guiding the vape community in this amazing world of electronic cigarettes.

12 COMMENTS

Daniel L04/13/2015

I’ve come to love my Lemo.

I would highly recommend you replace the metal fill screw with the included silicone plug. It comes in the form of a nub on a disc in order to properly apply pressure and a seal when you close/attach the bottom metal section.

Rolf K04/14/2015

Nicole Lea04/14/2015

Well I did mention that the 510 pin is adjustable in the specs, but I didn’t list it as a positive because I didn’t have cause to actually have to adjust it. But yes, adjustable pins are always a good thing. 🙂

Chris04/14/2015

The Lemo and Lemo Drop have been my favorite out of all my RTA’s due to its performance. I have no leakage when I put it in my pocket and that is a major plus when I go out at night or work during the day. Great job on the review, Nicole always gives an honest concise review.

Nicole Lea04/14/2015

Hi Chris 🙂 .. Well I must say that now that I have tried the Lemo and really do like the way that it vapes, I would consider the Lemo drop as well. The Lemo has proved to be really solid. Thank you for your comments.

Gary04/15/2015

Nice review as always Nicole! It is late but it also is quite relevent to today’s vaping as a huge percentage of RTA vapours still use and prefer the kayfun style of atomization. That being said maybe you can do a super article pitting all known kayfun style units against each other and see which comes out on top.